--- description: A landslide in California' s Big Sur buried a portion of the state's Highway 1 under 40 feet of rocks and dirt title: California Landslide Buries Big Sur Highway Under Rocks and Dirt image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd32d0dfcccc0dd00/6988ce9bcf40a8f91cc47d07/landslide-california.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # California Landslide Buries Big Sur Highway Under Rocks and Dirt  by [Alana Abramson](/author/alana-abramson/)  ## Alana Abramson Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close May 24, 2017 12:47 AM CUT  A massive landslide along California's coastal Highway 1 that has buried the road under a 40-foot layer of rock and dirt on May 22, 2017\. A swath of the hillside gave way in an area called Mud Creek on Saturday, May 20, covering about one-third of a mile, half a kilometer, of road and changing the Big Sur coastline. A massive landslide along California's coastal Highway 1 that has buried the road under a 40-foot layer of rock and dirt on May 22, 2017\. A swath of the hillside gave way in an area called Mud Creek on Saturday, May 20, covering about one-third of a mile, half a kilometer, of road and changing the Big Sur coastline.John Madonna via AP  by [Alana Abramson](/author/alana-abramson/)  ## Alana Abramson Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close May 24, 2017 12:47 AM CUT A [landslide](http://time.com/4502430/java-indonesia-flood-natural-disaster/ "undefined") in California’s Big Sur buried a portion of the state’s coastal Highway 1 under 40 feet of rocks and dirt. The landslide covers a quarter of a mile along the highway, according to the Associated Press, and authorities don’t know when that portion will re-open. The incident was one of the largest mudslides in [California’s](http://time.com/4790139/nacho-cheese-sauce-botulism-death/ "undefined") history, the Associated Press reports, and comes after the state endured a record level of snow and rain this past winter that caused several other similar events. Before this weekend, these storms alone were already set to cost the state over $1 billion in damages, according to the Associated Press. Highway 1 that runs through [Big Sur](http://time.com/4425857/california-wildfire-big-sur-parks-close/ "undefined"), which has been designated [American National Scenic ](http://www.bigsurcalifornia.org/scenic%5Fbyways.html "undefined")[Byway](http://www.bigsurcalifornia.org/scenic%5Fbyways.html "undefined"), is a major attraction for tourists. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4791816/big-sur-landslide-california-state-route-1/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4791816/big-sur-landslide-california-state-route-1/"},"headline":"California Landslide Buries Big Sur Highway Under Rocks and Dirt","datePublished":"2017-05-24T00:47:51.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T05:05:19.570Z","description":"The landslide covers a quarter of a mile along the highway","url":"https://time.com/4791816/big-sur-landslide-california-state-route-1/","keywords":["California","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd32d0dfcccc0dd00/6988ce9bcf40a8f91cc47d07/landslide-california.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Alana Abramson","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/alana-abramson/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd32d0dfcccc0dd00/6988ce9bcf40a8f91cc47d07/landslide-california.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"APTOPIX Big Sur Rockslide","caption":"APTOPIX Big Sur Rockslide","creditText":"John Madonna via AP","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4791816/big-sur-landslide-california-state-route-1/","name":"California Landslide Buries Big Sur Highway Under Rocks and Dirt"}}]}] ```